After doing the 10×10″ oil painting Oak Grove Bridge XXIV, I felt ready to return to the commissioned oil painting that combines the Oak Grove Bridge with Homer’s Nose (AKA Snozz Rock).
It was engrossing work. There were more design changes to be made, and I was eager to see if they made it more appealing, both in the execution and in the viewing.
At 11:45 a.m. I added some leaves in the upper sky region and began repainting Homer’s Nose in more carefully mixed colors. I also changed the line of the foliage in the center section because it was too straight across the top and needed to blend more gradually in the the distant rocky area. (Wow, this is so hard to put into words – you’d understand it better if you could see me waving my hands around and pointing.)At 1:13 I remembered to stop for another photo. Homer’s Nose is looking more detailed and more correct in its colorations.In the 2:11 photo you can see tighter detail in the rocky places to the right of Snozz Rock.At 2:48, I grabbed my camera again. Why?At 4:46 I took the final photo of the day because the background greenery was looking good, the bridge got new detail, the beginning of a truck, more colors and tighter shapes, and now the water is taking shape.
There is still much work ahead, but now I feel capable, thanks to my little guide buddy, Oak Grove Bridge XXIV.
P.S. Tonight is a public information meeting about the bridge’s future at the Three Rivers Veterans Memorial Building at 6 p.m. The plan is to “rehabilitate the bridge” to “correct seismic and structural deficiencies”. Maybe They will explain how, or more importantly, when and how long.
I thought about calling this “Final Chapter”, but I hope I live on to keep painting the bridge and improving with each one.
We made it through about 23 oil paintings of the Oak Grove Bridge. There were repeated views, color adjustments and exaggerations, brighter versions, muted versions, paintings with sharp clean edges, paintings that looked sort of blurry, and the last one from a completely different angle.
Then, I began working on the commissioned oil painting that combines the bridge with Homer’s Nose, a prominent landmark granite rock outcropping. The bridge felt too hard in this one, so I decided to do a smaller version of the exact same view in order to work out some difficulties.
“Difficulties”? I might be a slow learner, or perhaps a bit simple. I’ve painted the thing 23 times and still have difficulties?
Just try to be polite here, ‘kay?
Here is Oak Grove Bridge XXIV in a few steps (although it took many more than a few steps to do this).
As you last saw it. . .Beginning to tighten things up, like the tree/shrub on the far left that overlaps the bridge, ditto on the right, and adding light and detail to the bridge posts.A few minor adjustments remain, but it is SOLD!
There were some shenanigans by some hooligans while I was trying to concentrate.
This photo tells me that perhaps when I have finished all the commissioned paintings and drawings, I might do a bit of shelf straightening.
We made it through Oak Grove Bridge #18. Is there a #19? Yup. All the way through #23, which may or may not be the twenty-third oil painting I’ve done of this, my favorite bridge.
Oak Grove Bridge #19, 24×30″, begun in 2016, finished in 2017Oak Grove Bridge XX, 11×14, commissioned to match #16, 2016Oak Grove Bridge XXI, 10×10″, 2017Oak Grove Bridge XXII, 11×14″, 2017Oak Grove Bridge XXIII, 12×16″, begun in 2017, completed this year, sold.
I may have found a clue to the Oak Grove Bridge oil painting numbering problem. I was preparing for a show of oil paintings, and had several new paintings going at the same time. One was on a collapsible easel, and true to its nature, it collapsed and tore the painting on the table behind it. After feeling sick for awhile, I removed the canvas from its foundational frame and sewed it into a tote bag.
Numbering problems continue – there is no #12 or #13, and I jump between Roman numerals and normal numerals (what are those called??)
When life hands you lemons (or torn paintings), make lemonade (or tote bags). The painting wasn’t finished, but no one cares.
Now back to the completed oil paintings of the Oak Grove Bridge. I started messing around with exaggerated colors in 2014.
Oak Grove Bridge #14, 11×14″, still in my bright experimental stage, 2015Oak Grove Bridge XV, 6×6″, 2015Oak Grove Bridge XVI, 11×14″, 2015Oak Grove Bridge #17, 8×10″, 2016, back to brights againOak Grove Bridge XVIII, 8×10″, 2016
But wait! There’s more! More Oak Grove Bridge oil paintings.
Here we encounter a numbering problem. When learning to oil paint, every artist has her own system for keeping track of completed paintings (or not.) It took me awhile to sort things out. Hence, here are two Oak Grove Bridge # Nines and Tens.
Oak Grove Bridge IX, 6×6″ It looks as if I played fast and loose with the arches here, when compared to earlier versions. Got a little overconfident, perhaps?Oak Grove Bridge IX, 10×10″, 2014Oak Grove Bridge X, 6×6″, 2013Oak Grove Bridge X, 10×10″ 2014 (in my experimenting with brighter colors phase)Oak Grove Bridge XI, 6×6″, 2013
It is easy to go on and on and on about this subject. Tulare County landmark, favorite bridge, art. . .
Oak Grove Bridge V, also available as note cards.Oak Grove Bridge VI, a small version at 6×6″Oak Grove Bridge VII, also 6×6″Oak Grove Bridge VIII, another 6×6″ version
All of these paintings are sold and todayI’m giving you a break from all the “ads” (although you may commission me to repaint any of these bridge scenes for you!)
There will be several chapters in this series about my favorite bridge, the Oak Grove Bridge on the Mineral King Road in Tulare County, California. (All those specifics are just in case you are new to the blog; if so, welcome!)
Yesterday we looked at three pencil drawings of the bridge. Today I will show you some of my earliest oil paintings of this wonderful subject.
First oil painting of Oak Grove Bridge (or at least the first one I kept a record of), 11×14, 2009. I oil painted for 3 years before I had enough confidence to tackle this subject.Oak Grove Bridge III. What happened to #2?Oak Grove Bridge IV hangs in my friends’ guest bedroom, a great honor.
Keep your seat belts on – it is a long and winding road with about 20 more oil paintings of this beautiful Tulare County landmark to go!
In July and August, I don’t teach regular drawing lessons. My students often say “enjoy your vacation” or “have a nice summer” as they are leaving (and several cannot resist the urge to sing “See You In September”).
Although I do spend much more time in Mineral King in those 2 months, I am still working. Sort of. There was the show Art: Inspired by Mineral King on June 30. I deliver paintings to the Silver City Resort (AKA “The Store”), work on commissions (both pencil and oil), blog, keep track of what is selling, work on my new website design, work on the upcoming calendar, plan for any upcoming shows. That’s sort of working, isn’t it?
Sometimes the kittens become a tad bit distracting.This subject matter is getting easier in its architectural parts, but I still struggle with the rocks beneath the bridge. This is because they are hidden.This commissioned oil painting got a few licks on the canvas, but those rocks beneath the bridge really hang me up.The smaller bridge is drying and awaits more layers. Sawtooth and the river are also both drying, and are now for sale.
Sawtooth #33, 6×6″, oil on wrapped canvas, $65 includes sales tax (welcome to California)
The oil painting commission of Homer’s Nose With the Oak Grove Bridge felt too hard. Was I low on sleep? (That was both my parents’ question and/or conclusion any time there was a problem both growing up and as an adult.) Distraction was present in the form of some cats, a friend or two stopping by, the heat, lots of unfinished projects. . . but the main problem might have been fear.
So, I listened to the song “Fear is a Liar” by Zach Williams on repeat for an hour or so, and then I started a new painting of the same bridge from the same angle.
When I don’t know how to do the next step on a project, I often begin a new project. This may be the first time I’ve started a second painting of the same subject, the very one that has me handcuffed.
This 10×0″ painting of the Oak Grove Bridge is serving as a warm-up for the larger version in the commissioned oil painting of Homer’s Nose with the Oak Grove Bridge.
During this time of unfocused indecision, all my Mineral King paintings were crated up, ready to go to Silver City for the Art: Inspired by Mineral King show. This gave me a sense (albeit a false one) of not having enough paintings to sell. On top of that ridiculousness, I began the magical thinking of “What If Everything Sells and Then I Have Nothing of Mineral King?”
My response to that was to begin another 6×6″ painting of Sawtooth. Here they are on the drying wall in their sloppy scribble stage, along with the completed river painting.
Yep. Good decision. When you can’t get your work finished, just begin more work.
Aren’t you glad you stopped by for this uplifting, realistic, encouraging piece of artistic wisdom?
I find most painting subjects to be just a little bit too hard for me. Is this because I am mostly self-taught? Maybe. Is it because I have only been painting for 12 years? Maybe. Is it because I don’t know when a painting is “good”, or “finished” or “overworked” or “incomplete”? Yeppers. That’s it.
After struggling through figuring out how to blend Snozz Rock Homer’s Nose with the Oak Grove Bridge, how to work from 2 photos with different light, how to just make stuff up, all on a GIANT 18×24″ canvas (well, it IS giant compared to my normal 6×6, 8×8, 6×18 and 11×14 sizes!), I decided to work on the “teensy” forgiving 8×8″ oil painting of the South Fork of the Kaweah (“kuh-WEE-uh”) River.
Scary Scribble StageBetter sky, better upper foliage (painting back to front)Slowly working my way down the canvas, or forward in the scene
Cool! I’m starting to like this!Scout wondered if there was any reason to be alarmedNah, just normal human thingsTucker wondered if there would be any treats soon.Finished painting, signed, edges painted, and drying!
And thus we conclude the teensy forgiving oil painting of a common well-loved Three Rivers Kaweah River view. (Hey Uncle Google, how did I do on all those key words??)
